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Mets Backup Plans for Lowe

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Regis Courtemanche of Metsblog.com has a guest blog up at Newsday, discussing the Mets’ backup plans should they fail to sign Derek Lowe.

The Mets have expressed interest in Oliver Perez, Randy Wolf, and Jon Garland. Courtemanche’s first choice is Wolf.

Wolf posted similar numbers to Perez last year, and Perez is represented by Scott Boras, and will be asking for more years and money than Wolf. Additionally, Wolf is represented by the same agent – Arn Tellem – as Francisco Rodriguez, and is already on good terms with Omar Minaya.

Is not giving Lowe the money he wants really worth the drop-off in quality you might get with any of the backup plans though? Courtemanche doesn’t think so, especially because not going after Lowe leads to the possibility of him landing with the Braves or Phillies, which would harm the Mets even further.

Courtemanche also wonders why there has been no interest shown in Ben Sheets:

His susceptibility to injury is probably why, most notably the shoulder problems he incurred in 2006. Nevertheless, Sheets is much better than any of the above mentioned alternatives since he allows fewer homers, earned runs, and walks. Plus, his five complete games were third in the majors behind Roy Halladay, and his former teammate, C.C. Sabathia. Worth a second look if you ask me.

Olney’s Latest: Peavy, Braves, Lowe, Sheets

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More from Buster Olney’s notes from around the majors:

  • The Braves were so close to completing a trade a for Jake Peavy in November that they may want to revisit talks. Says Olney, "What they could do, if they are intent on contending in 2009, would be to sign Orlando Cabrera as a stop-gap at shortstop for 2009, and then deal [Yunel] Escobar in the package for Peavy." He also suggests the Braves give up on their refusal to give Peavy a no-trade provision for the entire length of his contract as that’s been a sticking point. Landing Peavy under any circumstances is a move their own players would support, even if he was given special treatment.
  • Derek Lowe may have missed out on the big money when the Yankees signed A.J. Burnett for 5 years, $82.5MM over him. Lowe’s highest offer is $36MM.
  • Olney says "there are more starting pitchers available than there are big-money offers available, so the Mets are bound to wind up with a good free agent pitcher."
  • Olney reports several teams are concerned about Ben Sheets’ medical reports; however, it’s his shoulder, not his elbow, that’s worrisome.
  • Pure speculation: "Jason Giambi will sign with Oakland, Pat Burrell will land with Tampa Bay."

Lowe Rejected Offer, Wants $16MM Per Year

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Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog passes on some comments made tonight by Jon Heyman on the MLB Network’s Hot Stove Live.

  • According to Heyman, Derek Lowe rejected the Mets’ three year $36MM offer because he hopes to sign a deal worth $16MM per season.
  • The Phillies and Braves are the Mets’ biggest competitors for Lowe.
  • The Red Sox and a mystery team are also involved.

Later on in the show, Mets GM Omar Minaya confirmed interest in Lowe, Randy Wolf and others. Cerrone notes that Minaya did not mention Oliver Perez.

Dodgers Rework Andruw Jones Deal

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SATURDAY, 11:23am: Buster Olney’s sources tell him that Jones will receive the $15MM he’s owed in 2009 over the next six seasons, without interest. Apparently the Dodgers are likely to call the Braves, Reds and Mets about potential trades. One source familiar with the discussions said it’s virtually certain that the Mets won’t be interested.

11:55pm: Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times says the deal cuts Jones’ 2009 salary to about $5MM.  The Dodgers agreed to trade or release him; interested teams may prefer to wait for the latter.  Shaikin says the Jones restructuring is independent of the Manny Ramirez situation.

7:51pm: Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports that the Major League Players Association has approved the contract agreement, which will defer Jones’ remaining salary.  According to an industry source, Jones will either be traded or released before the start of spring training and perhaps sometime this month.

FRIDAY, 2:38pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman says the Dodgers and Jones have agreed to rework his contract to save the team $12MM in ’09.  Jones is likely to play for another team in the coming season.

THURSDAY, 9:55pm: As pointed out in the comments section below, Andruw’s ’09 salary could be deferred across several years and would thus gain interest, resulting in a higher total payout.  That could work for both sides.  A blog called Fantasy Sports Experience recalls a similar situation with the Mets and Bobby Bonilla in 2000.

9:40pm: Ken Gurnick of MLB.com has confirmed that Jones’ contract is being reworked.  It could be an extension or a deferred buyout. 

9:00pm: I just spoke with Simers, who tells me that the Dodgers "would do the deal with Scott Boras."  Jones’ 2009 salary "would be reduced to make him attractive" to possible suitors in a trade.  And the agreement would essentially free up money on the Dodgers’ side that would head directly towards Ramirez, another Boras client.  But it’s still unclear why Jones would want to take the paycut.  Is Boras going to pay the man out of his own pocket?  This kind of dealing is unheard of in the sports world, but you can never doubt the almighty Scott Boras.

8:38pm: T.J. Simers of the L.A. Times has heard that the Dodgers are working on a deal to unload outfielder Andruw Jones.

Simers claims that the deal would save the team $12MM and "send the guy, who couldn’t hit a thing, seeking employment elsewhere."  Jones is in the final year of a two-year contract and is set to make around $15MM in ’09.  He’s not just going to forfeit that money, so it’s not exactly clear what kind of a "deal" the article is speaking of.  A trade?  Buyouts don’t typically happen in baseball.  Nonetheless, Simers is onto something and it appears the Dodgers are readying the cash to make an offer to Manny Ramirez.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Jays, Mets, Red Sox, Nats, Yankees

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On this date 32 years ago, commissioner Bowie Kuhn suspended Braves owner Ted Turner for one year for tampering. Turner had announced publicly that the Braves would sign free agent-to-be Gary Matthews. Unfortunately, 30 years later, nobody was disciplined when the Angels signed free agent Gary Matthews Jr. to a $50MM contract. In the first two years of the deal, Matthews has been paid $15MM and his play has been worth -$600K (yes, that is negative) according to Fangraphs. With several big free agents still looking for new teams, will any of them be the next Matthews Jr? Only time will tell. In the meantime, let’s see what is being written in the Blogosphere…

  • The Eddie Kranepool Society is not worried about Derek Lowe, feeling the deal will get done once the Mets add a fourth option year and sweeten the pot just a tad. They are also putting the Mets front office on notice about the possibility of letting Manny Ramirez slip through their fingers.
  • Mets Geek feels the Mets still need to add one more piece to their revamped bullpen and suggest Wil Ohman or Joe Beimel are better options as a lefty specialist than what is already in-house.
  • The Southpaw takes a look at some young players the Jays should try to target in the trade market, with Chin-Lung Hu at the top of the list.
  • My Baseball Bias is not satisfied with just Mark Teixeira and wants to see the Yankees sign Manny Ramirez.
  • Fire Brand of the American League makes a case for three players to be the Red Sox fourth outfielder, including Rocco Baldelli, Brad Wilkerson and Eric Byrnes.
  • MLB Notebook takes a look at how the Nationals could spend the $20MM that would have gone to Mark Teixeira.
  • River Ave. Blues says this offseason is proving to be a test of just how good Scott Boras can be.
  • Sully Baseball is running a series of posts breaking down each team’s all-time home grown versus all-time acquired teams. Here he looks at the Astros.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.

Sherman’s Latest: Red Sox, Lowe, Manny

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Joel Sherman of the New York Post has a new blog post up.

  • The Red Sox would like to trade for a young star player; they’ve already attempted to acquire Mark Teixeira and Hanley Ramirez this offseason.  The Sox seem willing to discuss some very talented young players of their own (Clay Buchholz seems a bit more available).  Sherman speculates on all kinds of names that could make sense for Boston.
  • Derek Lowe is not keen on taking less money and the same salary as Carlos Silva.  He and Scott Boras will take some time to see if someone can beat the Mets’ three-year, $36MM offer.  Ken Rosenthal wrote in November that most executives consider the Silva contract an aberration.
  • Sherman finds many reasons Manny Ramirez could make sense for the Giants.  He notes that Giants special assistant J.T. Snow can give the team the inside scoop on what it was like to be teammates with Manny.
  • The Cubs would’ve liked to send Jason Marquis home to New York (the Mets), but the Mets are addressing their needs one at a time and aren’t looking at the fifth starter role yet.  Sherman says the Rockies have long been fans of Marquis and like his bat.  He could accumulate 80 plate appearances, I suppose.

Lowe Unimpressed By Mets’ Offer

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Derek Lowe was "hardly overwhelmed" by the Mets’ three year $36MM offer, Mike Puma of the New York Post heard from a baseball source. Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe heard from a source of his own that Lowe’s "likely to continue shopping for a more desirable offer."

It’s uncertain who would make such an offer, since Massarotti writes that the Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies are not currently interested in Lowe.

As a result, the Mets could end up in what Puma calls a "protracted stare down" with Scott Boras and his client.

Derek Lowe Rumors: Wednesday

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4:07pm: Jack Curry of the New York Times weighs in.  He can see the Mets bumping their offer to $39MM for three years, but agrees that they won’t add a fourth year (despite four-year deals given to inferior pitchers in recent times).

8:43am: MetsBlog’s Matthew Cerrone says a Derek Lowe signing is "feeling inevitable" for the New York National League club.  They’ll have to up their three-year, $36MM offer; Cerrone sees the Mets as unlikely to guarantee a fourth year or reach $15MM per.

According to John Harper of the New York Daily News, Lowe told a friend that the Red Sox never showed serious interest.  Harper thinks the Mets’ limit is three years and $40MM.

The Mets’ competition for Lowe is unclear.  The Phillies, Yankees, and Red Sox don’t seem interested.  Still, if Lowe is coming at a discount you have to wonder if the Braves, Indians, Rangers, Brewers, and Cubs will get involved (entirely speculation).

Mets Make Offer To Lowe

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TUESDAY, 7:03pm: It looks as though the first of the Mets’ offers has been issued.

According to Jack Curry of the New York Times, the Mets have offered Derek Lowe a three-year deal, worth a total of $36MM.  I imagine half the teams in baseball would be willing to offer that amount to Lowe. The article maintains the current notion that Lowe is the Mets’ first choice to bolster their rotation.  He had reportedly been seeking five years and $90MM.

MONDAY: MLB.com’s Marty Noble on the Mets:

They intend to make offers early this week to at least two and probably three free-agent pitchers — Derek Lowe, Oliver Perez and Randy Wolf — in hopes of signing one of them.

Noble says the Mets continue to rank the three in that order – Lowe, Perez, Wolf.  The Mets haven’t shown any indication of wanting to sign more than one.  Lowe and Perez should be ready to sign soon now that Scott Boras isn’t occupied with Mark Teixeira.

Noble adds that the Mets aren’t terribly concerned about having only one left-handed reliever on the roster (Pedro Feliciano).  They’ll look for bargains rather than pursue a Joe Beimel type.  Mets GM Omar Minaya does want to acquire a utility infielder, with Alex Cora atop the list.

No Andruw Jones Trade In The Works

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TUESDAY, 9:02am: ESPN’s Buster Olney says the Dodgers and Mets "have kept the porch light on" in case some version of a Jones-Castillo swap can be made.  He talked to a source who believes the Mets’ chances of trading Castillo before the season are 50-50.

MONDAY, 8:12pm: MLB.com’s Marty Noble heard from a person familiar with the discussions between the Mets and Dodgers that "nothing is ongoing and nothing is going to happen." The clubs had preliminary discussions about trading Jones for Castillo during the Winter Meetings, but nothing is in the works now.

3:50pm: According to ESPN’s Buster Olney, the Dodgers and Mets have discussed an Andruw Jones trade.  Jones is still owed $22.1MM, and the Dodgers are "highly motivated" to move him.  Olney says it’s unlikely the Dodgers would have interest in Luis Castillo, however.  If the Mets wouldn’t be sending a bad contract back, I’d imagine they’d want the Dodgers to pay approximately $20MM.  Olney says the Mets would use Jones in right field – Ryan Church’s position this year.

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